Teach Me to Heal
by i'llbeyourlove
Summary: Bella: teacher. Edward: architect. Going about their separate lives, healing from their pasts until their kids and family decide that they would be great together. AH, canon couples
1. Chapter 1

Teach Me to Heal- Chapter 1

 **Bella**

\- Tuesday, October 13 -

"Okay, remember to finish the outline of your report for tomorrow," I said to my class just before the bell rang and they all scurried out of the class.

I sat down at my desk and started looking over my e-mails. I saw the shadow of someone standing at the front of my desk. I glanced up and saw one of my students, James.

"Hey, James. What can I do for you?" I asked wondering why he wasn't going to his next class like everyone else.

"Well, I was wondering if I could talk to you about my outline and see if I'm on the right track," he said.

"Of course! What are you worried about?" I wondered. I thought everyone was doing fine with the reading.

"Well, I'm just not sure if I'm doing the right thing and I want to make sure that it makes sense before we start on the next part," he shrugged.

"Okay" I glanced over at my schedule and noticed that I had nothing planned until later tonight so I looked back at James and said, "Is it possible for you to come back after school? I can look over what you have and we can chat what you're thinking."

"Okay, thanks Miss Swan," James smiled.

"No problem, here, let me give you a note for your next class so you don't get in trouble for being late," I said as I scribbled on a piece of paper noticing that the bell was supposed to ring in a 30 seconds.

As James left my class, I noticed the students in my next class sitting on the desks, talking to each other and some were playing with their phones.

The bell rang and I stood up, "Okay. I'm very lenient about you using your phones in my class when you're waiting for the bell. Put them away now, please."

The end of the day came quickly and James walked into my room a few minutes after the bell.

"Hi Miss Swan," James said.

"Hi James, have a seat and we can get started," I said while grabbing my pen and some paper before sitting down next to him.

James and I spent about half an hour going over his thoughts on his report and some of my suggestions.

"Thank you, Miss Swan," he exclaimed when we finished.

"It's my pleasure James; I'm glad that you're asking for help if you need it. Let me know if you have any more troubles as you continue working on your report," I smiled.

"Okay, I will. Bye," he smiled and walked out of my classroom. I had an inkling in the back of my mind that there was more going on with James than him being unsure about his report. He is one of my brightest students and was doing really well with the rest of the assessments.

Shaking my head, I packed up my stuff and headed out to my car. It was approaching 4 o'clock and time for me to head over to the daycare to pick up my little angels, Layla and Aiden.

* * *

The next night it was the first practice for the basketball team that I am coaching this year. The recreational league is always looking for people to coach more teams so that all the kids can play. I played basketball all through high school and college so I felt confident in my ability to help these young girls learn the sport.

"Hi, it's great to meet you, I'm Bella. I'll be your daughter's coach for this season. I'm looking forward to getting to know your daughter better and helping her develop her skills a bit more," I smiled at one set of parents. They had arrived with their daughter, Alyssa, who was now shooting hoops with a few of the other girls that had already arrived.

Tonight was the first team practice and I really was excited to meet all the girls and their families. By the looks of it so far it is going to be a good season.

"Thank you so much for coaching this year. They have been short on coaches and have had to cut people off because there wasn't enough teams so only the more advanced players could play. Alyssa tried last year but she didn't end up on a team. She's never played a real game before," said Alyssa's mom.

"I'm just glad that I can teach a bunch of wonderful girls how to play this sport. I'm very excited as well. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go meet a few more girls that just arrived," I excused myself.

I glanced over at Layla and Aiden who were sitting by the wall playing together. There was another family that had just entered and was standing just a few feet away from them. There seemed to be 3 kids and their father. The youngest of the three had jumped right in and started playing with Aiden and Layla. She looked maybe a year or two older than Aiden. I started walking over in that direction to introduce myself. As I got closer I heard, "Kaitlynne, those aren't your toys, you can't play with them without asking first."

"It's fine, really," I jumped in when I was in speaking distance. "Hi, I'm Bella, I'm the coach."

"Hi, I'm Edward. This is my daughter Addison, she likes to be called Addi though, and she's going to be on your team this year it seems," he smiled.

"Great! I'm very excited about this year. Have you ever played before?" I asked Addi.

"Not really. I shoot hoops in the driveway with my brother sometimes but I've never played before. I'm nervous," she admitted.

"You know what; a lot of the other girls haven't played before either so don't be nervous. I'm going to do my best to teach you all as much as I can so that by the end of the season you guys will all be great players," I explained to her.

"Mommy!" Aiden called and got up off the floor to come over.

"Shh, baby, Mommy's talking right now," I told him. He came over and wrapped his arms around my legs and hid behind them, he poked his head to the side every few seconds to see what was going on around him.

"I had a question, how often are practices and games going to be?" Edward asked.

"Well, we have a game every Saturday and a practice every Wednesday," I told him.

"Ok, thank you. She won't be able to make all the practices just because of timing and everything but we will try our best to be here as much as possible. Thomas sometimes has activities on Wednesday nights as well so we will see what happens. Do the parents have to stay or leave for practices?" Edward asked.

"Well, really it's your choice. Some stay and watch and others leave and do other errands or go home until the practice is over. The practice is only an hour long so there isn't much time to do anything in between but it's your choice. Now, am I safe to assume that you're the big brother that shoots hoops in the driveway?" I questioned turning to the young man standing beside his father.

"Yeah, that's me. I'm Thomas," he introduced himself.

"It's nice to meet you. And who is this little beauty over there with Layla?" I asked.

"That's Kaitlynne, she's 6. She seems to enjoy your daughter's company," he laughed.

"It seems that way. If ever you have a conflicting schedule for games of practices let me know. I can come pick her up and drop her back home," I offered.

"Oh, wow. Okay, that would really be great. We'll see what happens with his schedule and I'll let know. Thank you," he smiled.

I started practice five minutes later, some parents and siblings of my players sat on the bleachers against the wall of the gym. I noticed that Edward and his two other children stayed. Aiden and Layla seem to have taken to his youngest daughter Kaitlynne. The three of them were sitting close together playing and chatting with each other.

The girls ran through some drills that included shooting, running, and passing. More parents started arriving for pickups so I wrapped up practice and people started leaving.

After putting away all the equipment away and saying bye to parents, the kids and I headed back home for the night.

Baths and bed for the kids was the first thing on the agenda before I could sit down with a glass of wine and turn on the TV.

* * *

\- Sunday, October 18-

"Bella," Esme smiled at me in the coat room at the church, "How have you and the kids been? I haven't had the chance to talk to you in a while."

I met Esme and her husband, Carlisle, at church when my kids and I started coming here 3 years ago. Esme took instantly to Aiden and Layla and was almost like their grandmother. Esme and Carlisle have always supported me and have babysat them numerous times when they thought I needed a break for a few hours. It had been tough to raise two kids by myself since my husband passed away but they helped and encouraged me so much over the past 3 years. I was so thankful to them and I knew that I would never be able to thank them properly.

"We're doing really well actually," I said back, "lots of work now we're all back into school."

"What grade are you teaching now?" she asked.

"I'm teaching sophomore and junior English this year," I replied.

"That must be interesting. One of our grandsons is a sophomore this year and I believe he is taking it this semester so you must have him in one of your classes," she smiled. "Carlisle and I were going to go out to lunch, would you and the kids like to come with us?"

"That sounds like a good idea, we were just going to have sandwiches at home. Where are you guys going?" I wondered.

"We haven't decided yet, why don't we let the kids choose," she suggested.

"Sounds good, I'm going to just go get them from their class and I'll come find you guys in a few minutes," I told her.

I stepped into the room where all the kids were doing a craft, and some of the older high school students were helping them.

"Hi Mommy," Layla said when she say me.

"Hi sweetie, are you guys almost done your craft? We're going to go out for lunch with Esme and Carlisle," I explained.

"Yay!" she said and started putting away all the markers she was using.

"Aiden, it's time to go, sweetie," I said.

"Okay," he said.

When they were done cleaning up, we went into the hall and found Carlisle and Esme. Layla went running up to them and latched herself onto Carlisle's legs.

"Hi Layla," he smiled down at her.

"Hi," she replied.

"Are you ready to go out for lunch?" he asked her while picking her up in his arms.

"Yeah! Where we going?" she asked.

"I don't know, it's up to you and your brother," he told her.

"I want to go to Denny's," Aiden cut in.

"Me too!" Layla agreed.

"Denny's it is," Carlisle smiled at both of them.

We went and got into our cars and drove off to the restaurant. Once we got seated and ordered, the kids started drawing and playing games on the colouring sheets that the hostess left them. Esme and Carlisle were asking me all about the kids and my job and everything else they could think of the ask me.

I saw someone approach the table out of the corner of my eye.

"Mom, Dad?" a deep voice asked.

Esme and Carlisle turned in their seats to see who it was.

"Emmett! Hi, son. What are you doing here?" Esme jumped out of her seat gave him a hug.

"We're here having lunch. Lily got to choose the restaurant. James didn't want to come so he's at home," he responded. His eyes cut to me and the kids with a questioning look.

"How sweet. You guys should have come to church with us this morning. This is Bella and her children, Aiden and Layla; they come to our church. Why don't you guys come sit with us, I'm sure they could pull up another table for us. Bella, would you mind?" Esme suggested.

"Not at all, it's nice to meet you Emmett," I said.

We waved over the waitress and they got to work moving the table beside ours over to make it big enough for all of us. We all made introductions and their daughter Lily sat next to the kids and started colouring along with them.

"Bella works at the same high school that James goes to. She teaches English for his grade. Is he taking that this semester?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes, he is, has he been ok in class?" Rose asked.

"Oh, James Cullen, he's been a great student. He stayed after class the other day for some extra help. I didn't make the connection that his last name was Cullen when Esme mentioned it," I explained.

Lunch went by quickly with us getting to know each other more. I learned that Rose is a mechanic and owns her own garage, and Emmett is a lawyer. James and Lily were their only children and they had lived here in the Phoenix suburbs since they finished college and moved back to be near Esme and Carlisle.

"Mommy, Daddy," Lily started. "Is Uncle Eddie coming over tomorrow night?"

"Yes, dear, him and the kids are coming over for dinner," Rose assured her.

"Can Aiden and Layla come with their mommy come too?" she asked. I felt a bit shocked that this little girl wanted to invite us over for dinner. It seems she had taken a liking to my kiddos.

"You know what darling, I think that's a great idea. Wouldn't it be great for your uncle to meet Bella?" Rose's smile was growing.

"Oh no, I don't think that's a good idea. We wouldn't want to put you out any," I backpedalled.

Emmett piped in, "you all should come. My brother and his kids come over every Monday night for dinner and the kids play outside or watch movies. Rose's brother and his family come as well."

"I don't know. It's probably not a good idea since I'm your son's teacher," I resisted.

"Please Mommy, I want to play with Lily," Layla begged.

"James has football practice Monday evenings and then goes out for dinner with his friends so he won't even be there the whole night. Please, the kids would love it, I'm sure," Rose convinced me.

"Alright, we will be there. How about I make dessert?" I gave in.

"Sounds great," Emmett smiled.

Rose and I exchanged phone numbers so that she could send me their address. Soon after everyone was done eating we paid the bill and headed out separate ways.

* * *

Aiden knocked proudly on the door of Rose and Emmett's house the next night. My hands were full of chocolate cheesecake and vanilla cupcakes.

The door swung open and standing there was Edward Cullen.

"Bella?" his face showed confusion.

"Edward, you're Emmett's brother?" I asked.

"Yeah, how do you know them?" he inquired.

"I'm friends with your parents. I met Rose and Emmett yesterday when I was out for lunch with your parents and they insisted the kids and I come for dinner."

"Small world. Come on in guys, the kids are out back playing before dinner."

Edward took the desserts out of my hands and led me to the kitchen.

Rose smirked over our way when we walked into the kitchen and said, "I see you've met each other."

"The thing is we already knew each other," Edward smirked back. "Bella coaches Addi's basketball team so we met on Wednesday."

There were looks of confusion on their faces as they looked at each other.

The doorbell rang again before it opened and other face I recognized walked in.

"Jasper?" I questioned.

"Bella? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Emmett and Rose invited me to dinner," I drawled. "You're Rose's brother?"

"Yeah. This is my wife Alice, our girls, Amanda and Haylee are already outside," he introduced us.

"Well Bella, you have ruined every surprise we had. You knew my brother and Rose's brother. How is that?" Emmett joked.

"Well we teach at the same school, different departments though, but we know each other," Jasper explained.

"Never thought of that," Rose mused. "Bella is friends with Em's parents. We met up with them for lunch yesterday. Her kids loved Lily so we invited them all over for dinner tonight. She brought dessert."

"We're in for a treat then. I remember she brought some dessert to a faculty party last year, it was the first thing gone," Jasper smiled at me.

My head was spinning with all these connections that were right under my nose. We sat down to dinner and I had a fun evening with some adults that were my own age.

* * *

 **AN**

 **New story I'm trying out. Hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think. Next chapter for my other story Meant to Be will be up soon.**


	2. Chapter 2

Teach Me to Heal- Chapter 2

 **Bella**

The following week passed without incident. Wednesday night housed basketball practice, Thursday night was our weekly pizza night at the Johnson household; the kitchen was a mess by the time that our individual pizzas went into the oven.

Angela came over for dinner on Friday. The kids loved whenever she came over because she tended to bring the candy that I won't buy for them. Ang and I made dinner together while the kids played out in the backyard.

"So, tell me what's happening with you?" she asked.

"Basketball started last week so I've been busy coordinating everything and talking to parents. Have you ever met Esme's sons? I met them both since I've seen you last and had dinner with them."

"I have met them a time or two, I don't know them well though. One of them is single, right? Is he cute?" she teased me

"You need to get over this obsession with me dating again. But yes, Edward is divorced from what I understand. One of his daughters is on my team," I explained.

"You didn't answer my question…"

"He is a very attractive man and he seems nice from what I've seen," I gave up resisting.

"But you don't want to date him?" she asked.

"He has three kids…"

"You have two," she piped in.

"He's divorced, I don't know how recently. His daughter is on my basketball team. His brother's wife is Jasper's sister. His nephew is in one of my classes. I am so intertwined with so many people in his family already that I don't think it would be a good idea," I told her.

"You know, Bell, I love you to death but you can be so stubborn."

I just shrugged and stirred the pot on the stove. She knew the conversation was over at this point so she went and got the kids washed up before dinner while I set the table.

The kids enjoyed telling Angela all about the last week of their lives, well, what they could remember of it. She then entertained them with what I'm sure were exaggerated stories of what she's been up to.

Then it was time for a movie. It was Layla's turn to pick and she chose Ariel. Aiden wasn't too happy about it so he curled up next to me with his toy cars and used my limbs as roads.

Once the movie was over I toted the kids up to their rooms, read them a story and tucked them in for the night.

I came back downstairs to find Angela sitting on the couch with a glass of wine flipping through the channels.

"Anything good on?" I asked. I picked up the other wine glass from the coffee table and sat next to her.

"Not really," she then muted the TV and turned towards me. "Tell me, how are you really doing? Tomorrow's the anniversary, right?"

"I'm fine, honest. It's been three years now. I'm over the death, just not what led up to it. It still hurts that someone I trusted so much turned into someone so different."

"I know, honey. You'll let me know if you need anything, right? You know, not everyone is like that."

"I want to believe that so much Ang, but it's so hard. I don't want to talk about this anymore. How is Ben?"

The light in her eyes told me all was well with her fiancé, "I love that man! We were at a consultation for our wedding cake the other day. Now I want something classic- white fondant, cream and light blue lace pattern on top with edible flowers to match my bouquet, Ben absolutely hated the idea, wanted something a bit more 'manly' he said, but he eventually told me to order whatever I want."

I smiled at her and joked, "I think that's probably because he's afraid of what you would do if he didn't let you have what you want."

"I say every man needs a woman to make sure he isn't screwing everything up. I just guide him to making the right decisions, there's nothing wrong with that," she said in a blasé tone.

I giggled with her and then asked, "Is your dad excited? His baby girl finally becoming an honest woman?"

"I'm pretty sure he has a countdown on his calendar. We booked the honeymoon last night. We're spending two weeks in Hawaii right after the wedding," she exclaimed.

"Oh, that's great! I know you've always wanted to go! That will be a great trip for the two of you," I smiled.

"Yeah, we're both really excited about it. In my limited time outside of our hotel room I'm going to learn to surf," she joked.

I giggled along with her and we spent a while chatting in my living room. She then called Ben to come get her since she had too much wine to drink throughout the evening.

* * *

The next morning was the second basketball game for my team. The girls were having a lot of fun in practice and I enjoyed watching them learn each time they got on a court.

Edward waved to me as he walked into the school gym. Addi and Kaitlynne on either side of him. Addi ran over to the bench and threw her bag down before starting to warm up with her teammates.

I waved in response and smiled at him before turning back to the girls I was talking to.

The game was an absolute disaster from a technical perspective; the girls were still so young that understanding the game is quite difficult for some of them. A lot of them got confused which direction to go, many stopped dribbling and then started again so they got called. Finally, there were a lot of stray passes across the court.

Kaitlynne came over to the bench after the game was over to wait for her sister.

She looked up at me and asked, "Where are Aiden and Layla?"

"They're with my dad today, he wanted to spend some time with them today," I told her and saw her face drop, she was so sweet.

"Oh, when will I see them again?" she asked.

"They will be at practice on Wednesday, are you going to come?"

"Let me check!" She sprinted across the court and grabbed her dad's hand before dragging him over to where I was standing. "Daddy! I'm gonna come to practice on Wednesday, ok?" she then jutted her bottom lip out at him.

"Um, sure," he told her then looked at me with confusion clear on his face.

"My kids will be there on Wednesday," I explained.

He nodded his understanding before asking about my week.

"It's been great, my friend Angela was over last night, and my dad has the kids today so I'm just going to knock some things off my to-do list, which sounds boring but I'll be glad they are done."

He smiled and continued, "That's great. Thomas is over at my parents' today, he and my dad love talking about medical stuff that goes over my head."

"I never asked, what do you do?" I wondered.

"I'm an architect," he told me.

"Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly does that involve?" I blushed.

"I design all sorts of buildings. From houses to office buildings," he explained.

"That's really great, such a creative field."

"Yeah, it can be difficult to work with some people that want things that just aren't feasible but for the most part it is really neat to see my designs been built up."

"That's great. That's why I love teaching, I picked English because it was always my favourite but I enjoy teaching the younger generation, whether in school or on the basketball court because it's about so much more than the subject matter. I get to see their progress and watch them grow as people," I smiled.

By this time all the other girls had left and Addi and Kaitlynne were playing with the last ball on the court.

"I definitely agree. Well, I should get the girls home for some lunch. I will see you on Wednesday?"

I smiled and confirmed I would see him then. I said goodbye to the girls before gathering my things and leaving not far behind them.

I drove over to Dad's house later than afternoon in time to cook dinner for all of them.

"Hello," I called walking in the front door.

"Mommy!" Layla came running and smashed into my legs.

I scooped her up and twirled her around, "My little girl! Did you have fun with Grandpa today?"

She nodded her head at me and started squirming to be let down again.

I headed into the living room and ruffled Aiden's hair, he was sitting on the couch engrossed in what was on the TV. Dad was in the same boat but actually looked away and stood up to give me a hug.

"Hey Bel, how was your day?"

"Great, basketball was good this morning and I finished all my chores for the weekend and I'm halfway done my prep for the week."

"Good. I, um, have something to tell you. Want some help with dinner?"

"Sure," I said as I gave him a weird look. I set him up with a cutting board, knife, and some veggies to chop before asking, "What is it?"

"I've been seeing someone." I almost choked on the sip of water I was taking. Dad came over and patted me on the back to make sure I was okay.

"Can you say that again?" I requested in shock.

"I've been seeing someone, for about a year now," he admitted.

"Dad! A year? Why didn't you tell me before now?"

"Uh, you still weren't doing well last year and I didn't know how to bring it up. It had been so long since you mom died and I've never dated since so I wasn't sure how you would react. I didn't want to rub it in your face that I had found someone when you didn't anymore," he shrugged.

"Oh, Dad, I'm fine. I'm completely over all of that garbage. I'm so happy that you're happy and that's all that matters," I told him and then moved over to give him a hug.

"Thanks, Bell, I'm glad you're okay with all of this," he smiled.

"Of course. When do we get to meet her?" I asked.

"Well… she's been on my back about telling you and meeting you and the kids for a while now, she thought that will everything I've told her about you, that you would be fine so I finally agreed to it. What do you think about bringing the kids over for dinner next Sunday night for dinner? She wants to cook a meal for us."

"Sounds perfect, Dad. We'll be here. I can't wait to meet the lady that brought you out of your shell after all these years," I joked.

* * *

 **AN**

 **That's the end of chapter 2. Leave me a review and let me know your thoughts and what you think is coming next.**

 **Check out my other story "Meant to Be" if you get a chance, I will be updating that one in a day or two.**


	3. Chapter 3

Teach Me to Heal- Chapter 3

 **Bella**

No matter how much I try to deny it, I was attracted to Edward Cullen. I don't know whether it was simple infatuation because this guy is kind and paying me attention, if I've gone absolutely insane, or if Angela was right and it was time for me to start putting myself out there.

It's something I've really struggled with since my husband died three years ago. I don't know if I should be the grieving widow for the rest of my life or if it's ok that I move on and develop feelings for someone else.

It is so hard to try and squash any feelings that are coming up for someone when you see them multiple times each week and practically can't go 20 minutes without seeing someone that is somehow connected to them.

I hate that feeling where you're not sure if someone is just trying to be kind and friendly or if they are actually interested in you. And add to that you don't really know how you feel about that person either. I feel like a teenager again, my gosh, I was 27 not 15.

Today was not going to help. After weeks of trying to put it off, Edward and I along with our gaggle of kids were spending the afternoon together. Kaitlynne and Layla had been begging to play together more than on Wednesday nights and occasional Saturday mornings. Aiden sometimes joined in with them. Edward told me that Addi thought I was 'the best' and Thomas was indifferent, he didn't care where he was as long as he had his cell phone to play on.

Today was one of the three Saturdays during basketball season that my team isn't playing so we decided today would be ideal for this get-together.

I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. I poured myself a cup and went and sat in the living room and turned on the morning news.

Aiden sauntered down the stairs and came and sat down beside me.

"Hi baby," I brushed his hair back from his face.

"Hi Mommy," he yawned.

"Did you have good dreams?" I asked.

"Yeah, I dreamed that we went on an adventure in the snow."

"What kind of adventure?"

"We had to find things in the park. We were making snow angels and snowmen too," he explained.

"That sounds fun, maybe that's why you're so tired this morning, all that action in your dreams," I teased him as he yawned again.

"No, Mommy, people are always tired in the morning because they were just sleeping," he smiled up at me.

"Oh, gotcha."

"I'm hungry," he told me.

"What do you want to eat?" I asked.

"Cheerios!" he yelped.

"Okay, off to the kitchen."

I made him a bowl of Cheerios and sat him at the table before pouring myself another cup of coffee.

"What did you dream about Mommy?" he asked between slurping milk off his spoon.

"I dreamed about what we were going to do today when Edward, Thomas, Addi, and Kait come over to play."

"What are we gonna do?"

"I was thinking that we could build a snowman and have a snow fight in the backyard, have some lunch then turn on a movie for the afternoon," I explained.

"Yay!" he cheered.

I nodded at his agreement and started making some breakfast for myself. I drank a smoothie each morning for my breakfast, it was something I started when the kids were young and have continued to this day, it's much easier to drink something and carry it around with me as I get ready in the morning rather than having to sit down and eat an actual meal.

I walked upstairs to wake Layla and start getting her ready for the day.

"Good morning my beautiful princess," I sung softly.

She smiled and opened her eyes, "Momma," she yawned.

"It's wake up time, my dear."

"Mmmhkay," she responded.

I helped her out of bed and started helping her pick out some clothes for the day. She decided to go with bright teal leggings and a white t-shirt with a black heart on the front, inside the heart it said 'je t'aime' in cursive lettering. It was one of her favourite shirts.

She walked carefully down the stairs, one hand on the railing and one in my hand.

"Aiden!" she yelped when she saw him at the table.

"Layla!" he called back.

"What do you feel like eating this morning?" I asked her.

"Little eggies," she said. That is what she called scrambled eggs, because they were all in small pieces.

"You got it, doll," I smiled and helped her up into her booster seat.

I turned on the radio on the ledge above the sink for the kids to listen and sing along to.

An hour later the doorbell rang and the kids dropped what they were doing and raced to the door.

I opened it to Edward and the kids.

"Welcome, guys. Come on in. I'll take your coats and hang them up here," I smiled at them. I would try my best for my kids today, I was going to push back any confusion that I have regarding Edward and let them have fun with their friends.

"Living room is through there," I pointed. "Bathroom is down the hall on the right, make yourselves at home, I will be in the kitchen if you need me," I summarized to the kids and sent them on their way.

"Good morning, Edward, how are you this fine February morning?" I asked.

"I'm doing well, thank you. And yourself?"

"So proper, I thought I was the English teacher here," I joked then answered his question, "I'm good today." He chuckled along with me. "Can I get you something to drink? Coffee, tea, water?"

"Coffee would be great, thank you Bella."

"Of course, I was about to pour myself another cup."

Edward sat at the kitchen island on a stool with his coffee while I started getting ready to start cooking lunch.

"Have you guys not eaten breakfast?" he seemed confused as to the reason I was cooking so early in the day.

"We did, I'm just starting on lunch. I'm going to put some meat in the slow cooker to cook for a few hours so I need to put it in now so it is finished when we get hungry."

"So you're a planner?" he asked.

"Why yes, yes I am." I smiled. "Are you a planner or a scrambler when it comes to life?"

"I'm a planner when it comes to work but very much a scrambler for just about everything else. Trying to get us all out of the house in the morning is a disaster. I usually forget to pack lunches the night before, the kids don't like getting up and I have to fit in a shower for myself and making breakfast for the kids."

I smirked and said, "I used to be like that until I had my kids. I pressed the snooze button usually three times a morning, then rushed through getting ready and to work. After they were born I realized that that method wasn't going to work any longer so I started planning and preparing things as early as possible. Now it's just habit."

"Bella," he started then closed his mouth, seemingly not sure whether or not to continue. "What happened to your husband?" I cocked my head towards him in surprise. "I know your dad. You don't have the same last name so I know you were married at some point."

He was very perceptive.

"Edward, I really don't want to talk about it," I sighed. "I'm sorry but I don't feel comfortable telling you this yet."

"That's fine," he said as he covered my hand with his and squeezed lightly. "Would you like to hear about what happened between my ex-wife and myself?"

"It's not fair to ask that of you when I won't talk about my own experience."

"I don't mind. I met Lauren my first year of college at the University of Hawaii."

"Wait, wait, wait- you went to college in Hawaii?" I was shocked.

He chuckled and explained, "Call it rebellion, call it whatever, I had always wanted to go so I decided to apply on a whim and got in. My mom was devastated when I decided to go. I came home once at Christmas and once during the summer each of my first two years. I really loved it there.

"Anyways, I met Lauren my first year there, we started just being study partners at the beginning but eventually she asked me on a date and I felt bad about not wanting to go so I went even though I didn't really want to. She was pretty and kind but for whatever reason I didn't feel anything more for her.

"We went out a few times. I had fun but still wasn't developing more feelings for her until one day she told the other members of my study group that we were together. All the other guys seemed a bit jealous and at that point I realized that everyone thought she was a great catch.

"We continued dating and I did develop feelings for her, I don't really know how strong they were at that point. She told me she was pregnant just after I had turned 20, during the summer before our third year. I was so lost, I didn't know what to do. We decided to get married and raise the baby together. My parents weren't extremely happy about it but we had made our mistakes and this is how we felt we were going to fix it so they respected our decision."

He paused and took a sip of his coffee before continuing.

"Lauren's parents were really mad and said she was ruining her life and wanted nothing to do with it. We had a quick ceremony while we were here visiting my parents, they offered for us to move back and they might be able to help out a bit while we continued our schooling. They made it clear that they weren't going to raise the baby for us but they would help when we needed it.

"We rushed and moved back here to Phoenix and settled in in time for the new semester to start. Thomas was born in March the next year. Our marriage wasn't the best but I put it down to the stress of our situation. Three years later she got pregnant with Addi. It was really up and down, I loved my kids but Lauren seemed distant some times.

"Kaitlynne came along two years after Addi and to be honest, by then our marriage was no longer a relationship, we were people living in the same house, raising children and occasionally having, uh, intimate relations. Kaitlynne was a month old when Lauren got so mad at me she started shouting and let it slip that Kaitlynne probably wasn't mine. My heart broke that day.

"I went to my parents' house with the kids. My dad took them and kept them busy. I sat with my mom and cried for an hour. I told her everything. She told me I had some decisions to make: am I going to stay with Lauren and what do I want to do about Kaitlynne's paternity.

"The first question was easy. I was so done with the relationship at that point that nothing could have made me stay married to her. What I didn't know was if I wanted to know the truth about Kaitlynne and what I would do with the answer."

"Oh, Edward! I can't even believe this is real. I'm so sorry you went through all that. Why don't you stop, this can't be easy for you," I suggested.

"No, I would prefer to just get it all out there for you now.

"I made the decision that I needed to know whether I was her biological father or not, for my sanity. I planned to do the test privately and not tell anyone. I decided that the results wouldn't change the way I treated her or loved her. I knew Lauren had no interest in raising her regardless of whether or not she was mine.

"The results came back that I am her biological father, but it could have just as easily been the opposite. The divorce was quick after that, Lauren wanted money, I gave her a reasonable amount so she could leave and start a new life. I haven't seen her since the divorce was final and I'm happy with that."

"So you've been divorced for more than five years, and their mother has never once been to visit them or anything?" I was appalled.

"Nope, Lauren is not what I would call a good role model for children regardless so it's fine. I try my best to make sure they don't feel like they are lacking anything by having only one parent."

"Well, Edward, you seem to be doing a really good job."

"Thanks, I have asked my parents a lot of questions in the past years. I'm having memories of what I out my parents through when I was a kid and a teenager, I cringe for the future, hoping that my kids will have mercy on me," he joked.

"You know, I think, as parents we are all stronger and better than we think we are. We over analyze and agonize over everything we do and if we make a mistake we never forget, but usually the kids do. I think sometimes you just need to sit back and take a deep breath and remember that you can deal with anything that comes your way," I told him.

"That's both very comforting and very scary," he said, and I laughed along with him.


End file.
